In a Universe of Burning Worlds
by Voices in the Attic
Summary: They dream. They remember. All of their thoughts and words and the things they do come together in that universe of burning worlds.
1. Meteor Girl

**Author's Note: **I haven't written any fanfiction in a while, and so I thought I'd do the 100 Themes Challenge.

_**Prompt:** Introductions_

* * *

Sora is sitting there at the kitchen table, a bowl of cereal in front of him, when he hears the phone ring. He hears his mother answers it in the other room and exchange pleasantries with the caller before her voice lowers. She hurries into the kitchen and says, "Sora, I'm gonna be gone for a little bit, okay? I've gotta make a house call." Then she leaves.

And Sora pays the situation no attention, until later that evening when his mother mentions to his father the little girl at the mayor's house.

x x x

She is half-conscious. Aware enough that she can faintly hear the people around her. Aware enough to know that these people are not familiar to her.

There are two women, and a man. One of the women is extremely calm, while the other sounds worried. The man seems very worried, too. "…Fine… be fine…" she hears the calm woman say.

Her thoughts are muddled. The exhaustion she feels in her little body is overwhelming. Everything is dark. She has been in the dark for quite a while, though she can't remember for how long. But before, wasn't it a different kind of dark?

x x x

"Mom says that they found her on the beach," Sora says to his friend, Riku.

"Can we go see her?" Riku asks.

"No, Mom says she's still asleep," Sora replies.

Riku doesn't say anything, and he and Sora continue with their trading card game. But he's not focused on the game. He keeps glancing over towards the mayor's house, and thinking about the girl who washed up on their island.

x x x

She is sitting up in bed now, with a tray full of food on her lap. There is a big bowl of soup, some crackers, a sandwich, and a tall glass of milk. A man and a woman are sitting next to the bed, smiling at her somewhat expectantly.

"Are you hungry?" the man asks.

The little girl shakes her head in lieu of a spoken response.

"Oh, that's all right," the woman says. "We can always reheat the soup later."

After a short period of silence, the woman speaks again. "Do you remember your name, sweetie?"

"Yes," the little girl says quietly. "Kairi."

"Okay, well, Kairi…" the man begins, "Do you have any way of contacting your parents? Do you remember your address?"

Kairi stares at him, looking confused and a bit frightened. She shakes her head again, this time somewhat frantic in her actions.

"That's okay, you don't have to answer now," the woman interjects. "Let us introduce ourselves. I'm Amelia Hart, and this is my husband, David, the mayor of Destiny Islands."

_Destiny Islands?_

"It's very nice to meet you, Kairi."

x x x

Kairi stands in front of two boys. The younger one has wild brown hair while the older one has platinum locks and looks like he could use a trim. Their focus is no longer reserved for the now-paused movie they were watching, but for the little girl standing in front of them.

"Kairi, this is Sora," the woman says, "and this is Riku. Sora's mother and I thought it would be nice for you all to meet." She kneels down and tells Kairi that she and her husband will be with Sora's parents in the next room, kisses the little girl on the cheek, and leaves.

"Hello," Kairi quietly offers.

"Hi!" Sora replies cheerfully. His smile is big for such a small boy. He scoots over and pats the spot between him and Riku. The little girl hops up onto the couch and someone starts the movie again.

Riku smiles at Kairi, too, and though it is less impactful than Sora's, it is equally sincere. "It's nice to meet you," he says.

"It's… nice to meet you, too," Kairi says. She pauses for a moment while the boys laugh at something in the movie. "Uh… um… can – can we be friends?" She's a little embarrassed, and a faint blush spreads over her cheeks.

"Well, duh," is Riku's deadpan response.

"Yeah, we'll always be together!" says Sora warmly. "Too bad you didn't come here earlier, though. The night before, there was an awesome meteor shower!"

And though she isn't sure why, the last remark makes Kairi very, very sad.


	2. In Remembrance

She desperately wishes it to be as it was.

Sometimes, she becomes so overwhelmed that she cannot function. She will not see anyone. She will not eat. She will not sleep because of the dark.

She wants it to be the same, but knows it can never be.

The boogeyman – or something like it – is _real_ and now she will always have a reason to be afraid of the dark. It will never be like when she was child and could have her parents look under the bed and tell her that there's nothing there.

_There, all gone, it's safe now. _How ridiculous.

But most of all, she doesn't want to face _them_. Things have changed significantly in their relationship, and all three know it. She wants it to be like it was when they were young.

She's positive the others feel this change, too, or else they wouldn't be avoiding her. Of course, she can't really say anything about that since she's not making much of an effort to sort things out, either.

She just wants her innocence back.

She is curled up in her bed, facing the wall, when there is a knock at the door. She figures it is her mother coming to check on her. "Come in," she croaks.

It is not her mother. Rather, it is _he,_ the one with whom things have changed the most.

"Hi," he says quietly.

"Hi," she echoes.

"I called Riku to see if he wanted to come, but he didn't answer."

"Ah." She sits up with her back against the headboard of bed.

And this is the most they have said to each other in weeks. He swallows hard, trying to get rid of that lump in his throat, and her breaths become shaky and labored. He moves over to her bed and sits next to her, then lets out something like a strangled wail. In the next moment she finds him in her arms, sobbing, his head buried in her neck and his brown hair brushing against her cheek.

And no longer can she contain her feelings. She cannot avoid them, cannot deny them. And because she cannot do anything, she cries with him.

Together, they mourn over the innocence that they have lost. The innocence they can never have.

They desperately wish it to be as it was.


	3. Sunbeam

**_Prompt: _**_Light_

* * *

For some reason, she feels compelled to visit their secret place.

She leaves right after dinner. She's not even sure why she wants to go, given the time of night and her plans for the next day. But she does anyway.

When she gets there, she feels something strange emanating from the featureless door. It is dark yet welcoming; it tells her to keep her distance and at the same time beckons her to come closer. Her better judgment overrules her curiosity and she manages to put it out of her mind.

She stays in there for hours, alone with only her thoughts and perfectly at peace. She imagines the adventures they will go on, the heroic things they will do. She doesn't believe what they say, that one simply cannot go any further once one reaches a certain point. Surely whomever created the universe would not have been so cruel as to ensure that people would be trapped in their own little world forever.

Of course not, or else she would be somewhere else right now.

It doesn't feel like that much time has passed, but when she looks at her watch, she sees that it has been 3 hours since she left her house. She stands up to leave, but the moment she is on her feet she begins to feel something warm in her chest. It's sudden and surprising and it stops her.

It's kind of like the sun is shining on her, but in reverse, with the warmth hitting her heart first and spreading to the outside.

But once the feeling has spread to her fingers and toes and ears, it transforms itself from something comforting to something that feels like it wants to break out of her skin. Panic overtakes her and she begins to cry; _what is this feeling? _

_It won't stop, it won't stop, I'm going to die._

And then it happens. A beam of Light shoots from her chest, right where her heart is. It streams from her fingertips, the ends of her hair, every pore in her skin. _You are Light, pure, a true princess,_ someone says.

But there is no one.

The Light is gone and the pressure that was there before has been replaced with dizziness. She feels nauseous and as if her head is about to burst. She feels so, so cold everywhere but her chest. It still feels as if the sun is shining on her heart.

"Kairi?"

_Sora? _She turns around and it is indeed her dear friend.

"Kairi!"

The mysterious door gives way and a dark wind blows through, tossing her into the air. She feels as if she may break into a million pieces.

_I'm giving my heart to you, Sora._

Her dear friend runs forward to catch her, but moments before they touch, she shatters.

She is a thousand memories now, heartless and pure.


	4. Truth

A little short.

_**Prompt: **Questioning_

* * *

Even though She tells him that Sora has replaced him, he sometimes wonders if it's really true. They have, or, well, had, been friends since they were children. They both were just barely teenaged, but he'd thought that the bond between their hearts had been too strong to be dismissed so easily.

_How naiive._ That's what She would say.

She always reminds him that Sora was the one who had left _him_ behind. Sora could have accepted his hand. When he escaped into the darkness, Sora could have gone with him. But he didn't.

"Your heart is far stronger than his," She says. "It takes a very strong person to accept the dark. That is something he could not do."

She tells him that Sora doesn't even care about him anymore. That he's found new friends. That he isn't even looking for his old friends. And with Kairi, you couldn't count on him to save her heart. Sora doesn't care.

He doubts Her.

He knows many of the things She says are to gain his trust, and he is suspicious of Her motives. She is the Queen of the Darkness, and he isn't stupid enough to believe that She truly wants to help him.

Sora's heart was strong. He was always determined. Sora cared about Kairi, more than anyone. It was obvious. He had been searching for her that night, too.

Sometimes, he doubts Her. Although, he must admit that She is right about one thing.

It takes an especially strong heart to accept the darkness. And Sora couldn't do it. Sora couldn't let the darkness into his heart. Sora wouldn't get stronger.

So actually, She's right about two things, the second being that Sora can't be depended upon to save Kairi.

_He_ will save Kairi. With the help of darkness, he will get Kairi's heart back to her.

And Sora, well, eventually he'll deal with Sora. Though he distrusts that Her, people can certainly change, and he has not in the least discounted the idea that Sora has replaced Kairi and him. He does not want to end up a sentimental fool. He does not want to be weak.

She tells him that Sora has replaced him, and he knows that it is true.


	5. Touch

Kind of a long chapter, to make up for the last one.

**_Prompt: _**_Hold My Hand_

* * *

They are walking along the beach, searching for the perfect place to build a sandcastle. He is six, and she is five.

"Hey, Riku. Let's hold hands."

The little boy's face flushes red. He's never held a girl's hand before.

She notices his embarrassment and giggles, then clasps her little hand around his.

He holds her hand tightly, worried that if he lets it go, he might not get this chance again.

x x x

On the night of his ninth birthday, it is just the three of them. He has other friends, but Sora and Kairi are the only ones important enough to stay so late after the party had ended. They are finishing off the pizza and cake and watching a movie when Kairi sighs.

Riku looks over at his dear friend. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she responds wistfully, "I was just thinking."

"About what?" Sora asks.

"You know," she begins, "when I came here, I was really quiet. Mom says that it's thanks to you guys I came out of my shell."

She gives them each a gentle smile, and Riku notices that she is reaching for hand. His heart soars.

"Before you guys, my heart didn't really have a reason to..."

"A reason to what?" As Sora speaks, Riku looks over at him and sees that he is holding Kairi's right hand. Somewhere deep inside, he feels a twinge of jealousy.

"I don't know. Maybe it just didn't have a reason..."

All three fall quiet, unsure of what to say next. The movie drones on in the background.

Then -

"Happy birthday, Riku." Kairi's words break the silence. She smiles serenely and squeezes her dear friend's hand, and with that single action, any ill feelings Riku might have had dissolve in an instant.

x x x

Because he is thirteen now, he is always teasing those two about how he is superior to them. They are only _twelve_, but he is thirteen, an actual _teenager_.

And so, he finds it strange that now more than ever he wants to hold her hand. But she and Sora are holding hands now, and it wouldn't be right to disrupt them, no matter how much he may want to.

He can see it, plain as day. But he won't tell them. Maybe they'll take so long to figure it out that they'll get tired of each other.

_No, why would you think that?! They're your friends._

Kairi smiles up at him. "Hey, Riku. Let's hold hands."

He is caught off-guard by her request, and that, plus embarrassment and his newfound teenage pride, causes him to stumble over his words. He laughs nervously, then replies, "No way, Kairi... that's embarrassing. Sorry..."

"Oh..." Kairi withdraws her hand and forces a small grin. "Alrighty. But you can't expect me, a lowly twelve-year-old, to know the customs of teenagers." Though her tone has suddenly become lighthearted, Riku can tell that he has hurt her.

Immediately, he regrets his decision.

x x x

By fifteen, he feels that he should be independent. Of course he loves his parents. But he wants to set off on his own. He wouldn't be content to stay on the island for the rest of his life. He wants to venture into the unknown.

A storm is raging outside, but they swore that they'd leave tonight. After he is certain that his parents have gone to bed, he leaves them a note and then sneaks out of the house.

Outside, it seems that the island is being assaulted by a hurricane, and although the rain is falling in torrents and trees are being uprooted, Riku knows that something as insignificant as Mother Nature could never wreak such havoc.

He can feel it in his heart.

A sensation so dark and ominous that it chills him to the bone settles around him. It's terrifying, and at the same time, exhilarating.

_**Follow your heart**__,_ it tells him.

_Where should I go?_

_**The paopu tree**__,_ it responds.

As he fights his way through the storm to the smaller second island, mysterious black creatures begin to materialize from the shadows.

_Oh god._

They turn their attention towards him, as if preparing to strike, but they keep their distance.

_What is this?_

Then he remembers. The door. At the Secret Place. How did he open it, again?

He just touched it. He put his hand on the door and for a moment he was someone else and an overwhelming darkness entered his body and then it was gone.

Riku is the aloof, unshakeable, mature one.

Riku is terrified.

_Oh god._

He wants to turn back, but he can't. His heart is pulling him towards his destination with a force so incredible that he couldn't possibly fight it.

_Oh god, oh god, what have I done? What is this, what did I do, Kairi, please. Kairi, please, I'm scared, oh god, I'm scared, Kairi, please, hold my hand._

_Kairi, let's hold hands._

His swirling thoughts are, for a moment, enough to make him believe that his dear friend is beside him.

He reaches for her hand, and it closes around nothing.

_I'm so weak, I'm sorry, I'm weak._

Finally the tugging on his heart ceases and he is confronted with an enormous black hole. It is, in the most literal sense, tearing his world apart.

_I know I'm weak, I'm sorry. Kairi, please, let's hold hands._

And suddenly, he is not himself. The overwhelming darkness that had entered his body when he opened the door has found it's way back to him, and now the storm, the black hole, the terrible destruction is no longer threatening.

It is a welcome invitation into the unknown.

_Come on, Kairi. Didn't you feel the same way?_

He can finally be free of this dreadfully boring place and these dreadfully weak people.

_Come on, Kairi. We'll see other worlds. We'll find the unknown._

_Come on, Kairi. Take my hand._


	6. Asleep, Awake

I didn't have a muse so Neutral Milk Hotel gave me one. Inspired by their song, "Holland, 1945". You should listen to it.

This chapter is kind of all over the place, maybe I'll change it later.

**_Prompt:_**_ Dreams_

* * *

_"Wow, isn't it a beautiful day?"_

_It's the stormiest weather that Destiny Islands has experienced in quite a while. The wind is whipping violently, and the rain is pelting the window so sharply and quickly that it sounds rather like pebbles, not water, that are hitting the house._

_"Kairi..."_

_The girl turns to her dear friend and smiles. "Don't you think so, Sora?"_

_Sora cannot say anything. His voice, all of his words, have escaped him. For when his dear friend turned around to face him, there were roses in place of her eyes._

_But he doesn't mind. As long as she is happy, he doesn't mind much of anything._

x x x

Sora wakes with a start. What an odd dream. If it was so stormy, why couldn't she hear the weather?

Perhaps it is prophetic. Maybe that is why it was so mysterious. But then, isn't he a little young to be having such cryptic dreams?

Perhaps it means nothing.

x x x

_Although the sky is an ominous dark gray, it is only raining lightly outside._

_Sora wakes suddenly, his stomach churning._

_He dresses himself in a suit and dress shoes. Why?_

_He leaves the house._

_Right in his front yard, a funeral is being held. A small number of people have gathered beside the grave. Perhaps this is the reason Sora chose to wear what he did?_

_As he nears the grave, the anxiousness Sora feels intensifies. Why does he have such a bad feeling?_

_It's her._

_It's Kairi. He's can see that it's her now._

_Where are the roses?_

_He pushes his way between two people and they do not protest. They move their mouths, repeating silent words of prayer over and over and over. They do not speak out loud. They do not open their eyes._

_Now he is right at the edge of her grave. She is still alive._

_They are burying her alive._

_But where are the roses?_

_She has eyes now. Big, blue, beautiful eyes._

_She is crying._

_"Kairi, why are you crying?"_

_Where are the roses?_

_"Sora, why would they want me to see this...? It's horrible..."_

_What doesn't she want to see?_

_She continues to sob, but Sora cannot say anything. He wants to, but again, all of his words have left him._

_Someone begins to shovel dirt back into the grave._

_"Hey, she's alive!"_

_Flies have already begun to invade her skin, landing on her face and arms, ready to devour her even though she is not dead._

_The dirt continues to fill the hole._

_"She's still alive!"_

x x x

After breakfast, Sora hurries to Kairi's house. Perhaps he is taking his dreams too seriously, but the one he had last night has left him rather shaken.

What had Kairi not wanted to see?

Is something going to happen to her?

But it's probably nothing.

When Kairi answers the door, the boy lets out a sigh a relief. "Thank god."

"Um, Sora, is everything alright?"

"Yeah. Everything's fine. I was just, uh, making sure."

"Making sure... of what...?"

"Nothing, it's nothing. Trust me, everything's fine."

x x x

_As Sora walks down the cobblestone path, he wonders why this place seems so familiar to him. He's sure that he's never been here before. He's never left Destiny Islands._

_He descends the steps that lead to the town square and there, right in the middle of everything, someone is playing the piano._

_It's Kairi._

_Since when did she know how to play the piano?_

_"Kairi?"_

_The girl briefly glances at Sora and flashes him a smile. The piano is filled with fire._

_The flames are bursting from the top, from between the keys, climbing slowly up the legs, licking her fingers and wrists and it's only a matter of time before they devour her entirely._

_As the fire spreads, Sora reaches for her, but the heat is too intense. Strangely, though, Kairi seems at peace, and she continues to play even as the flames grow higher. What had been sheet music moments ago is now nothing more than a pile of ashes, but Kairi's fingers drift over the keys without hesitation._

_"Kairi!"_

_Why doesn't she get out of there?_

_"Sora," she says calmly, "I'm fine. I'll be fine."_

_She finishes the piece and turns to him, smiling._

_"Everything will be fine, Sora."_

_There are roses in place of her eyes._

x x x

For the third morning in a row, Sora wakes feeling anxious. What strange dreams he's been having lately.

They leave him with a bad feeling. What if they are trying to tell him something important?

They probably mean nothing.

Sora leaves to check on Kairi a second time. Just to make sure she's still there.

Just to know that she still exists.

He knocks on her front door, and when she answers, Sora is overcome with relief once again.

But his dear friend is concerned. "Sora, are you sure you're okay?"

"Kairi, I'm fine. It's nothing."

"No, it's not. You looked terrified. You looked like you thought I was dead."

"It's just... I've been having these weird dreams lately..."

"Sora, it was just a dream. I'm fine."

_Sora, I'm fine._

And when she smiles at him, he half expects her to have roses in place of her eyes.


End file.
